Court Bars Police From Arresting Sowore

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has stopped the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, and other security agencies from arresting or declaring activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, wanted.

Justice Musa Kakaki granted the interim injunction after Sowore filed an application following reports that the Lagos Police Command had declared him wanted over unspecified allegations. The court ordered the police to desist from harassing, intimidating, or threatening Sowore pending the determination of the substantive suit.

Speaking after the ruling, Sowore commended the court for what he described as a courageous decision, saying citizens must stand up to ensure justice is served.

Meanwhile, a Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday declined to issue a bench warrant for Sowore’s arrest in the case filed against him by the Department of State Services (DSS) over an alleged “anti-Tinubu” social media post.

The DSS accused Sowore of calling President Bola Tinubu a “criminal” in a post made on August 25, 2025, following the president’s claim in Brazil that his administration had ended corruption in Nigeria. The post led the DSS to ask X (formerly Twitter) and Meta (Facebook) to delete the content and suspend Sowore’s accounts, a request both platforms ignored.

In the charge filed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, M. Abubakar, Sowore was accused of violating the Cybercrimes Act and the Criminal Code. X and Meta were also listed as co-defendants.

At Tuesday’s hearing, DSS counsel Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN) requested a bench warrant for Sowore’s arrest, claiming he failed to appear for arraignment. However, Justice Mohammed Umar rejected the request, ruling that the case was not ready for such action since X Corporation had not yet been properly served with the charge.

The judge ordered that all defendants be duly served and adjourned the case to December 2, 2025, for arraignment.